Toner resins with suitable melt viscosity produce images with high gloss on plain paper, for example, from about 25 to about 60 gloss units, see, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,612,777; 7,301,675; and 7,304,770. Toners which generate high gloss images often are selected for process color applications and transparencies. The fixing or fusing temperature of such toners can be high and can be more than 160° C. That results in high power consumption, low fixing speeds and reduced life of the fuser roll and fuser roll bearings. Hot and cold offsetting also can be a problem. Also, a number of toner resins having lower melt temperatures have narrow fusing latitude and have poor mechanical properties, such as, creating too many fines during jetting, which can result in increased cost of toner.
There is a need for a high gloss toner resin and toner thereof, which has a fix temperature below 160° C. (referred to as low fix temperature toner resin or low melt toner resin), excellent cold and hot offset performance, wide gloss latitude and processes for the preparation of such a resin. Toners which operate at lower temperatures would reduce the power needed for imaging device operation and increase the life of the fuser roll and the high temperature fuser roll bearings. High gloss toners with a wide fusing and excellent gloss latitude and with good toner particle elasticity are needed. Further, toners with wide fusing and excellent gloss latitude can provide flexibility in the amount of oil needed as release agent, can minimize copy quality deterioration related to the toner offsetting to the fuser roll and can extend fuser roll life.
Some of the needs have been met by the development of low molecular weight latex resins (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 7,524,602, herein incorporated by reference in its entirety). However, there remains a need to develop a toner for overcoating and gloss enhancement applications that may be achieved more effectively with a clear toner.
Those and other advantages were achieved with the toners and processes of the present disclosure.